Tag: Go Big Read

The Woven Gardens of Hope: Afghan Women’s Carpets Exhibit opens today at the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection in Nicholas Hall. The exhibition highlights a community-based program to empower Afghan women through weaving of carpets following centuries-old techniques to create a sustainable quality of life for their families. Their carpets will be shown within the context of historic carpets and textiles from this region and culture, extending a past tradition into the present.

The gallery is free and open to the public. The exhibit will be open from January 23rd through March 1st and will have five featured events during that time. The first featured event is an opening ceremony this Sunday, January 25. To learn more visit the exhibit’s site here

America is often billed as a land of opportunity, but for many people there are barriers to accessing education, getting out of poverty, seeking justice and more.

“The Go Big Read program will provide a communitywide opportunity to further discuss the ways in which unequal opportunities affect our society and impact our relationships with one another.” -Rebecca Blank

If you’ve recently read something that engages with the theme of inequality in America, we want to hear about it. The deadline to submit books for consideration is January 30, 2015, and we are accepting both fiction and non-fiction nominations. You can use this form to nominate titles, and read more about our selection criteria here, and also see if your favorite title is on our running suggestion list.

Faculty and Staff, are you considering using this year’s Go Big Read book “I Am Malala” in your spring course? To arrange free books for your students, fill out the web form here.

Malala Yousafzai made history this fall when she became the youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. Malala’s activism and rousing speeches are a source of inspiration to students across campus. Malala’s book has sparked deep and engaging conversations across campus about religion, education, and culture. Examples include the event, “Breaking Stereotypes: Women in Islam” hosted by the Muslim Students Association and the event “Embattled Ideologies: I Am Malala and the Question of Women’s Education in Islam” hosted by the Lubar Institute for the Study of the Abrahamic Religions. You won’t want to miss the chance to include your students in these important conversations.

Malala Yousafzai is a model for young speakers and activists all over the world. Here in Madison, other young people are using their own life stories to promote social causes that matter to them. In this showcase event on Dec. 3rd, UW students from the Communication Arts 181 honors public speaking course will speak on a variety of topics that have impacted them, their families, and other folks on campus in a personal way.

The Go Big Read book, “I Am Malala” has spurred many conversations on campus about education, women, and Islam. If an individual only watched mainstream “breaking” news they may falsely associate Islam with the Taliban, terrorism, or oppression. However, “I Am Malala” has sparked a different dialogue on campus. A conversation that focuses on strong Muslim girls who value education, whether it is Malala who had to overcome unimaginable barriers, or Shiza who has used her education and power to help others. Even though conversations have been started, many stereotypes still exist about Islam on our own campus.

Naman Siad, UW Madison senior and President of the Muslim Students Association, understands what it is like to have her identity questioned and have false stereotypes applied to her. In her Badger Herald article she says, “My scarf has often been an object of conversation, often invoking questions about “Where I am really from,” and “How is my English so fluent.” My answers always shocked people when I said I was from Madison and that my English better be fluent as it was my first language. I would often be frustrated with these types of situations. While my fellow classmates were never questioned on their American identity, I would often struggle to “prove” myself.”

Naman and the Muslim Students Association realize that the campus conversations about “I Am Malala” are an opportunity to break down stereotypes and false assumptions in the student body. This Friday students and community members have an opportunity to be a part of a conversation surrounding women in Islam.

The Muslim Students Association is holding a panel event tackling the misconceptions of Women in Islam and showcasing a positive image of successful Muslim Women across America! The inspirational panel will talk about the role of Muslim Women from three different perspectives. The event is at 7 pm Friday, Nov. 21st, in Sterling Hall Rm. 1310.

Campus is full of students bundled in mittens and scarves scurrying about as they desperately try to avoid the blustery wind and swirling snowflakes. Winter has officially arrived in Madison Wisconsin, whether we are ready or not. The rest of the week promises chilly temperatures, and by the end you’ll likely be craving a steaming cup of cocoa and the chance to curl up with a warm blanket and a new book.

If you enjoyed this year’s Go Big Read book, I Am Malala, then you will want to consider choosing one of the books below that cover similar themes, regions, and topics. All of the books are available in campus libraries, you can discover the location by clicking on the linked titles.

An award-winning foreign correspondent who contributed to a Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times series reveals the secret Afghan custom of disguising girls as boys to improve their prospects, discussing its political and social significance as well as the experiences of its practitioners.

Born into the Zaghawa tribe in the Sudanese desert, Halima Bashir received a good education away from her rural surroundings and at twenty-four became her village’s first formal doctor. Yet not even Bashir’s degree could protect her from the encroaching conflict that would consume her homeland. Janjaweed Arab militias savagely assaulted the Zaghawa, often with the backing of the Sudanese military. Then, in early 2004, the Janjaweed attacked Bashir’s village and surrounding areas, raping forty-two schoolgirls and their teachers. Bashir, who treated the traumatized victims, some as young as eight years old, could no longer remain quiet. But breaking her silence ignited a horrifying turn of events.

An extraordinary young woman raised in the refugee camps of Iran and Pakistan, Joya became a teacher in secret girls’ schools, hiding her books under her burqa so the Taliban couldn’t find them; she helped establish a free medical clinic and orphanage in her impoverished home province of Farah; and at a constitutional assembly in Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2003, she stood up and denounced her country’s powerful NATO-backed warlords. She was twenty-five years old. Two years later, she became the youngest person elected to Afghanistan’s new Parliament. In 2007, she was suspended from Parliament for her persistent criticism of the warlords and drug barons and their cronies. She has survived four assassination attempts to date, is accompanied at all times by armed guards, and sleeps only in safe houses.

Mukhtar Mai, a Pakistani woman, was gang raped as a punishment for indiscretions allegedly committed by the women’s brother. However, Mai fought back and changed the feminist movement in Pakistan, one of the world’s most adverse climates for women. Mai was awarded money from the government and she used it to open a school for girls so that future generations would not suffer, as she had, from illiteracy.

Embattled Ideologies: I am Malala and the Question of Women’s Education in South Asia Event Today

The UW Lubar Institute for the Study of the Abrahamic Religions is hosting an expert panel today from 4:00-6:00 pm in the Sheldon Lubar Faculty Commons, Room 7200, in the UW Law School.

The event brings together four expert scholars on Islam and Education to discuss the challenging and complex questions surrounding women’s education in tribal Pakistan, the historical encounter of Islam and modernity, and the cultural problematics of international aid.

If you are interested in a deeper intellectual conversation surrounding these issues you will not want to miss this event!

People of all ages and backgrounds anxiously waited in line Monday night for the chance to hear Shiza Shahid speak about her experiences with Malala and her background as an activist. Varsity Hall quickly reached capacity, but auditorium doors were opened so that those who could not fit could still see and hear Shiza and over 700 viewers from home watched the live steam of her speech.

Shiza’s speech left the audience captivated, whether it was from the emotional videos she shared, or her own personal stories of triumph and heartbreak. The crowd was taken on a journey of this inspirational young woman’s life and when her story was complete she left the crowd with this parting advice, “We [all] have our struggles. We [all] have our fears, By
saying ‘I am Malala,’ we promise to try and be stronger than those
fears, than whatever is holding us back. I want you to remember, you are
Malala.” The crowd erupted into applause and gave Shiza a well deserved standing ovation.

If you were busy Monday night or even just want to
experience the talk again it is now available online, posted as a link below. A
captioned version will be available next week and I will be placing it
on this blog when it is ready.

If you have not finished this year’s Go Big Read book, “I Am Malala”, you will want to find the time this weekend to complete it before the keynote event on Monday!

On Monday Shiza Shahid will be visiting campus to deliver the Go Big Read keynote address. Shiza co-founded the Malala Fund with Malala and has been named on Forbes 30 under 30 list. She is a powerful and motivated woman that will no doubt deliver a powerful speech that you will not want to miss!

The event is at 7:00 p.m. at Union South in Varsity Hall on Monday, October 27th. You will want to arrive early since a large crowd is expected. The event is open to the public and no tickets are necessary.

There will be Q&A session after her speech. We hope to see you all there!

Malala Yousafzai and children’s right activist Kailash Satyarthi were jointly awarded the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize today. The Nobel Prize board announced that Malala and Kailash were awarded “for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education.”

The Taliban took over the Swat region of Pakistan where Malala lived in 2008. The Taliban immediately began closing schools for girls. In 2009 Malala began her fight for education. Malala was only 11 when she began anonymously blogging for the BBC about her struggles to receive an education and the fear she lived in everyday. That same year she came forward and announced who she was. Malala publicly criticized the Taliban for not allowing girls to go to school. All Malala wanted was an education.

Two years and one day ago Malala was shot in the head by Taliban men on her way home from school. The world was shocked that a child who was only 15 had been so callously and cruelly attacked. Malala’s assassination attempt brought international attention to Malala and her cause.

Malala had a long road of healing ahead of her, but she never forgot about her fellow Pakistani classmates who were still fighting to receive an education. Malala and Shiza Shahid created the Malala Fund, an organization dedicated to helping all children receive an education. Malala had every right to be angry after her attack, but instead she said “I don’t want revenge on the Taliban. I want education for sons and daughters of the Taliban. Malala, who is only 17, is the youngest ever recipient of a Nobel Prize.

Malala has inspired an education movement that brings together people from all across the world. Her work through the Malala Fund is truly making a difference, and she has no plans of slowing down. I for one expect nothing but greatness in Malala’s future.